1. Field of the Invention
In-flight crew escape systems have been considered for use when a space vehicle is unable to reach a landing site, and the flight crew determines that the chances of survival are better if they "bail-out" of the space vehicle prior to an abnormal landing. The in-flight crew escape system provides the flight crew with an alternative to water ditching or to landing on terrain other than a landing site with the crew remaining in a space vehicle due to the probability of minimal flight crew survival.
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for effecting a safe and rapid in-flight escape of the crew from the space vehicle. More particularly, an astronaut's exit is controlled by the astronaut by use of a lanyard connected to a rocket assembly. Rocket misfire is avoided by use of a safety device. At least one rocket assembly is provided for each member of the crew of the spacecraft. Should a rocket assembly fail, the astronaut can change connections from one rocket assembly to another.
The proposed mechanism is designed to remove the astronaut from a stricken space vehicle or aircraft. The device is designed to pull each astronaut safely past any aircraft empennage which they could strike if they jumped from the space vehicle or aircraft without assistance.
2. Background Art
Tractor rockets have been previously used to extract a person vertically from an aircraft or space vehicle when in a seated or standing position. These rockets have never been used, however, to extract a person horizontally form the vehicle. Additionally, other prior art devices utilized a rocket magazine concept, wherein the rockets were stacked vertically, and for each firing, a new rocket was dropped into place. Should one rocket or magazine mechanism fail, the remaining rockets were no longer usable.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,900,874 discloses a "turret 15" which selectively carries a number of rockets 10 from above to a location below the fuselage of an airplane in position for firing.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,982,180 discloses a launcher which is actuable to eject "several stores units either simultaneously or sequentially in a rearward direction".
U.S. Pat. No. 3,387,537 discloses a missile with a releasable band therearound. Release is effective through a trigger actuating wedge which is separated from the band by a parachute or a static line. This patent cites U.S. Pat. No. 2,816,119 as disclosing a releasable locking plate or key which is moved by a lanyard attached to an aircraft. The lanyard must be substantially vertical to remove the locking plate or key.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,517,584 discloses apparatus for ejecting high explosive stores and missiles from a carrier aircraft into the slip stream without materially affecting the velocity or altitude of the carrier aircraft during successive ejections of a plurality of missiles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,318,328 discloses apparatus for aircraft to carry missiles in a manner such that they may be launched from the aircraft while the latter is in flight.
U.S. Pat. 4,397,433 discloses a magazine for carrying buoys while on board an aircraft, the magazine being rotatable to place successive buoys in positions to be jettisoned from the aircraft.
A sales brochure published under the title of "RANGER ROCKET EXTRACTION SYSTEM" by Stensel Arrow Engineering Corp., P.O. Box 1107, Arden, N.C., 20704 illustrates a tractor rocket escape system wherein a crew member is pulled from an aircraft.